Teachings

Kopan Course No. 14 (1981) Audio and Unedited Transcripts

The following are excerpts from the teachings given by Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche at the Fourteenth Kopan Meditation Course, 1981. The teachings include a commentary on Shantideva's Bodhicaryavatara [A Guide to the Bodhisattva Way of Life.] Unfortunately, one of the tapes from Lecture Six was lost, and the remaining recordings were not good enough to publish online. So we have posted only those which are most clear. The entire lightly edited transcript of Rinpoche's teachings from this course can be read or downloaded here.

Lecture 1: White Tara

To do the oral transmission of this mantra first before we recite together, so please generate the motivation for taking the oral transmission of this mantra: At any rate I must achieve the state of omniscient mind for the benefit of all the sentient beings. Therefore I am going to take the oral transmission of the White Tara, the long-life mantra.

From Tara's heart, from the mind unbearable compassion flows from the heart for us the sentient beings. From that holy mind the white nectar rays flowing, and purified the obstacles, the unsubdued mind, the karma which causes the holy beings to have short lives. Those are purified, those obstacles which are within one's own mind, then all the obscurations and negative karma which comes from that, negative karma, then disease, spirit harms, those also you can think purified, those are purified. The spirit harms, diseases which come from the cause, the unsubdued mind and action, karma. Those are purified and also other sentient beings' unsubdued mind, their obscurations, unsubdued mind and the actions which come from that, karma, the negative karma. Then all their suffering, all their problems, disease and all other rest of the problems, all the sufferings of body and mind, your father, mother, friend, enemy and all the rest of the sentient beings. All the true suffering and the cause of the suffering are completely purified by, the white nectar rays flowing from Tara's holy mind. You can visualize the unsubdued mind, negative karma, those diseases, all the confusions of the life, all the sufferings of body and mind are completely purified in the form of dirty liquid, filthy dirty liquid coming from the lower doors of the body and also from all the pores, like when your body is very dirty and when you are having a shower how the dirt comes out, like that.

One can make request to Tara, the holy beings to exist until samsara ends, to exist and to continuously do the works, to turn the Dharma wheel for oneself and all the sentient beings. And also yourself, as the white nectar rays fill your body and the bodies of other sentient beings, you can think also, if one wishes to have long life also one can make request. Then one can think when you stop the mantra you can think: I have received the realization, the undying realization. One can think this, I have received the undying realization.

One can request the long life of one's parents; if there are sick people that you know, then also one can pray, one can visualize the nectar flowing, purifying, their body filled up with white nectar, the undying white nectar and think that the person achieves the realization, the undying realization.

However whether yourself pray or not for yourself to have long life, however, it is very important to pray for others, for those who protect karma, avoiding the harmful actions, the non-virtuous harmful actions, who practice the virtuous actions, who have refuge in the mind, those who recite even one mantra OM MANI PADME HUM, even those sentient beings who recite this mantra, to have long life. Even who recite the mantra just OM MANI PADME HUM, the six syllable mantra, even those sentient beings to have long life. You see, those sentient beings who accumulate merit, especially the sentient beings who know how to accumulate merit, if they have long life you see, then the longer they live then they are able to make their life more meaningful. They are able to create more cause of happiness, so there is sense in living long. There is a meaning to live, to have long life for them. Like this.

However, by being as human beings not being as animals, not being as other, the lower, other type of sentient being who has greater suffering, other type of body, which has greater suffering. By being a human being, those who do not practice Dharma, those who do not understand Dharma, those who do not attempt to accumulate merit, there is a little bit more opportunity for them by being, by having human body may be a little more opportunity for them to experience temporal pleasures...